Be Mine
by Midnight113
Summary: Troy is determined to get Gabriella to go out with him and be his Valentine but first he has to prove himself in some uncanny ways. Anything to get her to be his. T&G Oneshot.


**Be Mine © Midnight113.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical or have any affiliation to it.**

**Synopsis: Troy is determined to get Gabriella to go out with him and be his Valentine but first he has to prove himself in some uncanny ways. Anything to get her to be his. T&G Oneshot.**

**_A warning to all potential thieves, this work is copyright 2011 Midnight113._** **_Be Mine is completely the work and property of Midnight113, to reproduce under any other name is theft!_**

* * *

**Be Mine**

**"~*~"**

**"-"**

**'-'**

Troy Bolton watched her from afar, studying her every move, her every facial expression. He loved her smile and the way her eyes lit up whenever she laughed. Her giggle was contagious but nothing compared to the way her nose would crinkle and scrunch up whenever someone said something that either disgusted or amused her.

The thing that mesmerized him the most, though, wasn't how smart she was or how beautiful she looked, it was her scowl. That scowl she reserved especially for him because she supposedly hated his guts. Now Troy knew this was all an act and that in truth she was secretly pining for him. Who wouldn't? After all, he was the most popular guy in school. Captain of the basketball team and the hottie super bomb jock. It was only natural for her to fall gracefully at his feet and worship him.

Instead, Troy faced a serious problem. He wanted her more than anything he had ever wanted in his life but she was a bookworm, a sometimes quiet and shy brainy type. She was by no means anti-social and she didn't look like a nerd on the outside, she dressed conservatively and made it a point to ignore the popular crowd.

Ever since she had transferred to East High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico last year, Troy had tried his best to get her to go out with him. He figured anyone he set his sights on would be lucky to have him showing interest in them but not her. No, she could care less. She turned him down, on a regular basis in fact. It got to the point where Troy wouldn't take 'no' for an answer except, that's the only answer she had for him.

Despite his continued failed attempts at asking her out, Troy never gave up. There was just something about her that fascinated him more than any other he had ever had the pleasure of interacting with at East High. Ever since she'd walked into home room Troy just knew there was something different about her. She had this aura, this distinct presence that commanded attention and boy did she get that attention. Every guy in the school wanted her but Troy Bolton was the one who was going to have her.

Leaning against his locker, Troy watched her as she placed her books in her locker and laughed quietly at the stupid math joke that Taylor Mckessie, the leader of the brain heads, was telling.

Deciding now would be the perfect time to corner her before lunch period, Troy pushed off of the cold red metal and stalked towards her like a lion hunting for its prey. His eyes trailed up her long, jean clad legs, lingering on the speck of visible toned skin near her hips as she stretched up high to grab her lunch money.

Subconsciously, Troy licked his lips as he got closer to her. That luscious looking ass squeezed nice and tight in her jeans as she wiggled slightly on her tip toes. Troy's steps faltered as he took a minute to admire the view, catching his breath before proceeding to her locker. He was so focused on the petite brunette's body on display before him that he barely caught Mckessie's snide comment, "Uh oh, jerk alert."

Completely ignoring the president of the national decathlon team, Troy pressed himself right up against the back of the small brunette whom had captured his interest. He heard her gasp at the unexpected contact which only spurred Troy on further, causing him to push into her until his hips were flush against her.

"You really shouldn't wear such tight jeans Montez, you'll give guys the wrong idea." He husked, tilting his head so that he could whisper in her ear.

He figured she didn't like his close proximity when she lifted her elbow and dug it deeply into his abdomen. Letting out a low grunt, Troy stumbled backwards and watched as Gabriella Montez flew around in rage with a scowl plastered on her gorgeous exotic features.

"You shouldn't either, you'll give everyone the wrong idea." She mocked him right back, slamming her locker and turning to Taylor. "Let's go, the oxygen here has suddenly become contaminated." Troy smirked at her attempted wit, loving that she was playing with him.

Taylor nodded, gripping her books tighter to her chest as they both turned to leave. Before Gabriella could take her third step, Troy raced up behind her and lightly squeezed her hips causing her to jolt in place and sneer at him from over her shoulder. "Do you mind?"

"You know you like it baby." Troy taunted, wiggling his eyebrows. "Show me a little love, it's Valentine's Day."

"I don't care, go get a cheerleader to hang off your arm." Gabriella informed him, yanking her body out of his grasp.

"Ooh, feisty. I like it."

Taylor rolled her eyes, interjecting with, "Go bother someone who cares Bolton."

Troy didn't even bother to grace Taylor with a stare, instead he simply smiled at Gabriella. "You know Taylor, I think Chad's looking for you."

"Oh no, not that lunkhead." Taylor replied grimly with a sigh as Chad Danforth, Troy's best friend and co-captain of the East High Wildcats, walked up next to her with a shy smile.

"Hey Tay, can we talk?" Chad asked quietly, rubbing his arm in a vertical motion. His heels were bobbing back and forth on the tile floor as he waited nervously for her reply.

"No."

"Oh." Chad sighed, looking down sadly.

Taylor rolled her eyes, deciding to take pity on the poor guy. "Fine, what do you want?"

Chad's eyes lit up as he looked at her and then over at Troy and Gabriella who were both watching with amusement at the situation. "Uh… privately, can we talk privately?"

"Danforth, I swear…"

"Sure man, I was just going to talk to Gabi here in private myself." Troy offered, wrapping his hand around Gabriella's arm and gently pulling her backwards towards the end of the hallway.

Gabriella's eyes shot up as he dragged her, the sneakers on her feet screeching against the tile as she tried to resist him. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Come along my little gerbil spitfire." Troy coerced with a smirk as he pulled her in front of him and placed his hands on her hips, guiding her along down the now vacant hallway.

"What did you just call me?" Gabriella asked curiously as Troy just chuckled, steering her along out of view from Chad and Taylor.

* * *

"Sit." Troy motioned to the bench on the rooftop garden but Gabriella, being her obstinate self, crossed her arms across her chest and gave him a skeptical look, popping her hip out to the side. Troy laughed at her stance, "Or you can stand, whichever works for you." He slowly sat down, leaning back on the bench and spreading his legs out.

Gabriella's eyes skimmed his body from his chestnut locks all the way down to his black vans and tattered low riding jeans before she looked him in the eye, making sure to not get lost in those bright blue orbs. Letting out a quick sigh, she blew a piece of her long black hair out of her face. "What do you want Troy?"

"You." Came his quick, curt reply.

Gabriella huffed, throwing her hands out, "See? That's why I don't like talking to you. You're a womanizer."

Troy straightened up quickly, his eyebrows shooting up as he widened his eyes in shock. "Me? A womanizer, where the hell did you get that idea?" He asked.

Leaning against the railing, Gabriella shrugged. "That's what I've heard."

"From who, your little friend Taylor?" Troy bit out scornfully. "Please, she doesn't know me."

"Have you ever taken the time to get to know her?" Gabriella asked.

"Has she?" He threw back.

Gabriella rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah, because she would just approach your table in the lunch room and strike up a conversation."

"Well that's usually how friendships get started." Troy explained. "That's what I did to get your attention."

"Yeah, but not because you wanted to be my friend."

Troy nodded, looking her straight in the eyes. "That's right, I don't just want to be your friend and you know that."

"Yeah, well you don't exactly have a good reputation Troy. I'm shocked you even want to be seen with me."

"Why?"

"Because, I'm not a cheerleader or apart of any sports teams."

"Well thank God for that." Troy chuckled before leaning forward and pulling something out of his back pocket. "Here, this is for you." He handed her the little envelope with a charming grin.

Gabriella moved forward slightly, taking it item out of his outreached hand before she settled back against the railing. Quickly ripping open the envelope, Gabriella read the little red and pink card that had a large heart in the middle with the words, 'Be Mine' on the front. Looking up, she threw him a incredulous look before tucking the card back in its white cover and placing it in her back pocket. "I'm flattered." Her sarcasm was evident as she put the card away. "In fact, that's the first Valentine I've received today and it will probably be the last so thank you."

Troy smiled, happy with himself and with the reaction he'd gotten. She seemed genuinely surprised by the gesture. "You're welcome. So… will you?"

"Will I what?" She asked, folding her arms again.

"Be mine?"

Gabriella waited a moment before she let out a scoff, that slowly turned into a snicker and then a full out hearty laugh. Troy just sent her a blank look before she got a hold of herself. "Wait, are you serious?"

"Uh… yeah?" Troy spoke in a obvious tone. "Of course I am, I've been trying to get you to go out with me for like, months."

"Oh come on, you don't really want to date me Troy."

"Yes I do." Troy clenched his teeth together, angry that she was trying to tell him what he wanted. As if he didn't know.

"You're way out of my league, I'm at the bottom of the food chain and you're not. So save yourself the hassle and go find someone else." Gabriella groaned, tilting her head back. "What about that blonde chick with all the pink rhinestones and stuff? She'd be perfect for you and she obviously likes you…"

"No." Troy barked out, getting to his feet and suddenly towering over Gabriella as he walked closer. "I don't want Sharpay, I want you… and… I usually get what I want."

Gabriella's eyes widened at that as she sunk back against the railing a little more, averting her eyes from him. "I uh… I don't go for cocky jocks."

Troy smirked, taking a couple steps closer so that he was pinning her against the railing. Placing both of his arms on either side of her hips, he caged her in and leaned close to her face. He took delight in hearing her breathing hitch and falter at his closeness and his smirk widened. "I can be whatever you want me to be baby. Just say the word." He informed her, leaning in closer until their lips were just centimeters apart.

Gabriella's eyes flickered across his face quickly, taking in his distinct features. His blue eyes, the light freckles on his cheekbones and along his nose. His well defined jaw and shaggy hair. There was no question why he was the most popular guy in school, he had the look that made the girls swoon and the guys want to befriend him. His ego was definitely intact, not to mention his smug, arrogant mindset.

Getting a hold of herself, Gabriella swallowed before straightening herself. "Okay."

Troy's eyebrow rose as he pulled back to get a better look at her face. "Okay?"

"You want to be my boyfriend, you want me to be your Valentine?" Troy nodded quickly without hesitation. "Prove it then."

"Prove it?" Troy blinked as she shook her head.

"Yes… you can start by sitting with me at lunch and not flirting with me in front of the other jocks. Just be yourself, not the jerk you usually are but the nice guy I know you can be. Think you can do that?" She cocked her head and smiled sweetly, figuring he wouldn't accept her challenge no matter how much he seemed to want her.

Troy was fast to reply. "I can do that, I'll prove it. You and me, we're meant to be together."

Gabriella was a little taken back by his bluntness and to tell the truth, she was shocked he had agreed but nodded quietly. "Uh… alright then. Let's go eat."

Troy smiled, moving away from her but before he completely pulled away, his head swooped in and his lips pecked her cheek in a chaste kiss. Gabriella was completely caught off guard and stood frozen for a second, processing what he'd just done.

"Ladies first." He moved to the side and bowed slightly, allowing her to pass but Gabriella made sure to keep her eyes on him as she did, curious as to whether or not he'd try anything else. She was pleasantly surprised when he didn't however, simply following after her and actually restraining himself from touching her.

* * *

Taking a seat next to her in the cafeteria, Troy tried his best to ignore the shocked glances and quiet whispers floating around as he followed Gabriella right to her table. They had walked into the lunch room together, getting in line and retrieving their lunch all the while, the guys at the jock table had sent him confused glares.

Troy looked up from his tray at Gabriella's friends that were all staring at him, seemingly surprised he was sitting with them and actually eating his lunch. "What's the problem, haven't you ever seen a guy eat a burger before?" He asked, shooting a look at Taylor Mckessie, Kelsi Nielson and Martha Cox.

Gabriella turned her head slightly to watch him as he dug into his meal but not before sending her a small smile.

"Uh… what's going on?" Taylor asked.

"A game." Gabriella replied, taking a sip from her water bottle.

"What kind of game?" Kelsi, the tiny composer asked with a small voice.

"Let's just say, Troy will probably fail." Gabriella replied with a smile. "So Tay… how was your talk with Chad?" She asked, hoping to change the subject.

Taylor visibly gulped before replying, "Not very eventful." And then she proceeded to fill her mouth with food.

Troy shot her a curious glance before he leaned forward on his elbows and grabbed a fry, "Really now? So how exactly was it not eventful?" He popped the fry in his mouth and waited for her response.

"Uh… we just talked about stuff."

Gabriella suddenly became suspicious over her friend's odd behavior. "Stuff?"

Taylor heaved a loud sigh before pushing back from her lunch tray. "Fine, he gave me a Valentine and asked me out… happy now?"

Troy smirked triumphantly. "I knew it, he's been trying to ask you out for-"

Taylor cut him of before he could finish, "Shut it Bolton, I didn't ask for your commentary."

"Well it's not like you said yes, right Tay?" Gabriella asked, taking a bite of her burger.

"Um, about that."

"Taylor! You didn't." Martha piped up, causing the whole table to turn and look at her.

Kelsi shook her head sadly, "Really Taylor?"

"What about all that talk about them being lunkheads and not to let them reel us in? Huh? Remember that?" Gabriella's voice was hysterical as she regarded her friend.

"I know, I know… it's just he was so cute and shy while he was asking and… it's not that big of a deal you know… it's not like I'm marrying the guy." Troy scoffed while staring at Gabriella's scowl before he took a bite of his meal.

"Not yet, but if he did propose I bet you'd fall to your knees and say yes." Gabriella argued. "After everything you told me about them Taylor, I can't believe this."

"Believe it." Troy spoke through his mouthful of meat, "We're really not that bad you know, especially Chad."

"Who asked you?" Gabriella shot back before focusing her attention on Taylor again.

Troy chuckled despite himself, "Alright baby."

"Don't call me that, you haven't proven yourself yet, therefore you have no right to give me pet names."

"Okay, Gabi." Troy added with a smirk as she groaned.

"I'm confused." Kelsi timidly commented from across the table. "Is this part of the game you're playing?"

"Yeah, 'cause it's stupid if it is." Taylor informed them while eating her sandwich.

"Ugh, I shouldn't have started this." Gabriella moaned, dropping her forehead on the top of the table.

Troy sent her s sympathetic stare, patting her back comfortingly. "I know it's hard to resist me but you're doing a great job… if that helps."

Rolling her eyes, she inwardly scolded herself before replying, "Thanks, it really does."

Troy nodded, "Just trying to do my duty of showing you I'm perfect boyfriend material. So what do you want me to do next?"

Gabriella lifted her head just in time to see the confused looks on her three friends faces before she turned and looked at Troy. She figured this was her chance to get him to give up perusing her, so she might as well milk it for all it was worth. "I want you, to take your burger and put Martha's PB&J sandwich on it and then… I want you to put every condiment there is on it and eat it. Think you can handle that?" Gabriella gave him a fake smile but was surprised once again by the glint of humor in Troy's eyes.

"Really? How does eating a disgusting array of food together prove to you that I'm your guy?" Troy asked.

"It will prove to me that you really are willing to do anything I say, regardless of how idiotic it might be."

Troy thought about it for a moment before getting up and grabbing Martha's sandwich, "Sorry, you don't mind do you?" He asked as Martha quietly shook her head like a stunned bystander. Troy placed the sandwich on top of his patty before taking the burger over to the condiment station. Gabriella watched in awe as he put ever single topping on the burger including, salt and pepper before he was satisfied.

A minute later, he was taking his seat again and holding the sandwich up for Gabriella's inspection. She looked at the disgusting concoction before nodding. "Now eat it."

"Gladly." With that, Troy pushed the buns together and slowly took a large mouthful. He was obviously over dramatizing the whole thing, chewing slowly like he was savoring the taste. "Mmm… that's delicious."

"Wow." Kelsi and Martha hummed together as they watched him eat the gross looking burger.

Gabriella kept her face completely void of any expression as she watched him. He was good, she had to admit. After swallowing the first bite, Troy quickly dove in for a second one, his eyes not once leaving hers as he proved his point. "Something you should know about me baby, before we start dating… I have a concrete stomach. I'm an eating machine, I'll eat anything, anywhere, anytime…" Troy trailed off as he swallowed.

Gabriella rolled her eyes, of course he would be the one guy in East High with the strong stomach. Just her luck. "Okay, you can stop now or else you're going to make me hurl." She informed him as Troy took one more bite for emphasis before placing the burger on the tray in front of him.

"Impressive." Taylor finally commented. "I wonder if Chad would do that for me."

"He probably would, he doesn't have a strong stomach like me so he's probably puke but he'd still do it." Troy shrugged, reaching forward to drink some water and remove the nasty taste from his mouth.

Gabriella rose to her feet suddenly, anticipating the bell as it rang a few seconds after. "I've got to get to class."

"I'll walk you." Troy commented, standing up and grabbing their garbage to ditch.

Gabriella turned around quickly with wide eyes. "Please don't, I can make it there myself."

"Well it's on the way… what's the matter? You scared you won't be able to control yourself with me?" He teased, wiggling his eyebrows.

She let out a small scoff, "Yeah right."

"Then there's no problem. Besides, it's all part of the whole proving myself to you."

Rolling her eyes, Gabriella motioned with her head for him to follow. "Fine. I'll see you guys later." She waved at the three girls who were all standing and gathering their stuff together.

"Stay strong Gabs." Martha encouraged with a wave.

"She'll try." Troy answered for her and then met her eyes with a smile. "But it won't work."

* * *

While opening her locker, Gabriella ignored Troy's quiet presence behind her that was making her feel slightly wary to be honest. The hallway currently only had a few students in it but was otherwise deserted and knowing the most popular guy in school was literally a couple feet away from her put her on edge. She hated to admit it, but he did always have an affect on her, regardless of if he was trying to woo her or not.

Flinging her locker open with a clank, a small pink envelope floated down to the beige tile, landing on the tip of her sneaker. Smiling, Gabriella bent down and grabbed it, waving it around in front of Troy's face. "Ha, well look at that. I actually did get another Valentine today."

Troy rolled his eyes, moving to lean against the locker next to hers as he watched her giddy with excitement. "Of course you did baby…"

Gabriella ignored his comment, letting his stupid endearment slide right off her shoulders as she ripped open the card. Her smile immediately brightened when her suspicions were confirmed, it was a Valentine. Her eyes skimmed the quote on the front before she opened it to be met with the words, 'Be mine because I think you're beautiful.'

Gabriella's smile faltered as she looked at the familiar scribble. Her eyes slowly raised to meet Troy's smirk that was already planted on his face. "So will you be mine yet?"

"You wrote this? You gave me another Valentine? Why would you do that?"

"Because I'm not going to stop until you go out with me." Troy inched his face closer to hers as he spoke. "I'll give you a million Valentine's until the message gets across. I. Want. You." He emphasized as he leaned in closer, lowering his voice. "And I'm not stopping before it sinks into that thick brain of yours."

Frustrated with the turn of events, Gabriella grabbed her book bag and shoved her books in it. "Why don't you just go walk through the parking lot in your underwear, maybe then the message will get through your thick skull to that small brain you must possess."

Troy remained silent, not having a comeback for that. Instead, he looked over contemplative. His brow furrowed as he continued to study Gabriella's pathetic attempt at shutting her locker.

"Look, thanks for walking me to my locker but I can take it from here." And with that, she slammed the locker shut and sprinted away to her next class.

Troy was frozen in his spot, still thoughtful as he watched one of his friends, Zeke Baylor, approach Gabriella and walk with her to the class they shared. Putting his hands deep in his pockets, Troy glared at them as she laughed and giggled while walking along the hallway with Zeke and he hated that she couldn't seem to do that whenever she was with him.

Pushing off the locker, Troy clenched his fist and slammed it into the metal causing the sound to echo through the hallway and for a couple of students to turn and look at him fearfully. Cradling his fist, Troy sucked in a deep breath before making his way to his own locker… an idea suddenly planted his head.

* * *

Finally, it was the end of the day and Gabriella couldn't be more relieved. Flinging her book bag over her shoulder, she walked down the hallway towards the exit with Taylor next to her.

"So Chad wants to take me to a fancy restaurant tonight." Taylor informed her friend.

Gabriella nodded, half listening. "That's nice Tay, I'm sure you'll have a great time."

"Hey Gabs, maybe… you should just say yes to Troy."

Rolling her eyes, Gabriella blew a frustrated sigh out of her mouth as she opened the large metal door. "Come on Taylor, do you really think he genuinely likes me and wants to date me for me." She eyed her friend skeptically. "Or do you think he only likes me because I'm unattainable in his eyes, simply because I'm not apart of his group of friends."

"I don't know Gabs, Chad was saying…"

"Oh yeah, don't even bother with that. I'm sure Chad was painting a very nice picture of his best friend. I however will not give in so easily, I'm smarter than that and I definitely won't set myself up to get hurt in the end."

"But you like him."

Gabriella's eyes bulged out of her head. "What! That's ridiculous, I don't fall for jocks. I'm suppose to go for the intellectual type."

"But you like him." Taylor repeated with a smile forming on her lips while Gabriella scoffed, ignoring her friend's lunacy. "How about for today, you forget everything I told you and everything you're suppose to think… and just go for it."

"Just go for it?" Gabriella lifted her eyebrow and smirked. "Now you sound like you're my cupid."

"Maybe I am." Taylor shot back with a chuckle. "Someone has to be."

"Pssh, I'm perfectly fine by myself but thanks anyway." Gabriella and Taylor walked across the parking lot towards Taylor's car. Once they arrived, Gabriella flung her bag in the backseat and shut the door. Before she could get into the passenger side of the car though, the entire parking lot broke out into loud hollering and whooping. Curious, Gabriella searched the lot to try and see what was garnering so much attention.

"What's going on?" Taylor asked, looking up from her phone after sending a quick text to Chad.

Shrugging her shoulders, Gabriella shook her head. "Don't know. Somebody is-" She couldn't finish her sentence though, too focused on the sight that was appearing in front of her eyes.

Walking down the steps in front of East High, was the infamous Troy Bolton clad in only his red heart boxers, black vans and a sign taped to his chest that said 'Be Mine'.

Gabriella's mouth slowly opened in shock, her jaw hanging open unattractively as her eyes widened. What was he doing?

Setting his eyes on her, Troy smirked and walked calmly in her direction with his hands behind his back. Taylor gasped when she finally noticed the very naked Troy approaching them and let out a snicker. "Oh he's good." Taylor mumbled under her breath but Gabriella wasn't paying attention. Instead, her eyes were solely concentrating on the incredible body that was making its way to her. She admired every detail of his abdomen, every mouth watering muscle and her immediate thought was, 'why would this guy ever be interested in someone like me?'.

Coming to a stand still directly in front of her, Troy smiled.

Gabriella opened her mouth to speak and was rendered speechless. She quickly shut it, taking a deep breath and shutting her eyes to calm her nerves. Feeling brave, she opened her eyes again and made sure to not stare at his body. "What… uh, what exactly are you doing Troy?"

"Proving I do listen to you, and that I don't care what anyone else thinks. I only care about what you think… no one else matters." Troy smiled.

"Well right now I think you're out of your mind!" She shouted. "Are you crazy, if Principle Matsui sees you… or your father… you'll be expelled."

"I don't care." Troy shook his head.

"Well I do!" She yelled on the verge of a nervous break down. "I was only joking about the whole walk naked through the parking lot thing… I can't believe-"

"You care huh?" Troy cut her off with a smile.

"Oh of course I care." Gabriella flung her arms up in the air and let them slap against her thighs. "That doesn't mean anything though."

"Be mine." He asked, stepping forward a foot. "One date and if you don't have a good time then I'll never bother you again." He reasoned.

Gabriella crossed her arms over her chest, biting her bottom lip. She shook her head and looked anywhere but at him. "I doubt that." She muttered, a smile slowly pulling at the edge of her mouth. "You're crazy."

"Certifiably." He added with a smirk. "Please…" And with that, he moved his hands out from behind him and presented her with a box of chocolates and a bouquet of red roses. "Be mine, if only for a day. I promise you won't regret it."

Gabriella was full out smiling now as she studied his sincere pleading behavior. "Maybe… I'll give you a chance." She bargained, "But only… if you put your clothes back on."

Troy's smile spread across his face in less than a millisecond. "Anything for you baby."

She put her hand up to stop him. "Don't start that again, this is a test date. You still have to prove yourself."

Troy nodded quickly. "Okay, I will."

"And no more flowers and candy, that's not going to gain you points." She informed him, taking them from his outstretched hand as she spoke with a smile.

"Got it." He nodded again. "So… I'll pick you up at seven?"

Gabriella thought about it for a minute and then nodded. "Sounds good."

"Alright." He winked, looking over her shoulder. "Nice seeing you Taylor." He waved and turned around, walking towards his car.

"Yup." Taylor trailed off. "Wow, I wonder what Chad looks like without a shirt on."

Gabriella watched Troy as he sauntered to his white truck, completely ignoring the catcalls from the group of teenage girls standing next to their car. Gabriella's smile remained on her face as she bit her lips again before processing her friend's words. "Probably not as good as that." She heard herself say and then blushed profusely.

"Ah hah! I knew you liked him, look at you, blushing…"

"Shut up Taylor." Gabriella giggled, getting into the small black car with a grin.

"Gabi and Troy sitting in a tree, K. I. S. S.-"

"Oh grow up!" Gabriella slapped Taylor's arm as she buckled her seatbelt.

* * *

After dinner at the local diner and an entertaining game of mini-golf, Troy and Gabriella were now sharing an ice cream cone as they walked along the outdoor mall at the shopping center in town.

"I totally kicked you ass." Troy hummed, licking at his chocolate cone as they discussed who had won the game of golf.

"Please, I so owned it." Gabriella protested.

It was hard for her to admit, but so far the night had been perfect. She hadn't had so much fun with a guy before. She'd only been a couple dates in her seventeen years of life and they had all been average, dinner and a movie. Troy had pleasantly surprised her with the casual dinner and fun game of min-golf afterward. What she hadn't expected, was to have such easy going conversations with him. She figured he'd talk about himself and basketball but actually, he had asked Gabriella about herself. What she thought of East High, what it was like moving around all the time for her mother's job. She hadn't expected him to care about such mundane topics never mind act intrigued whenever she talked about herself and her life.

"No way… that last hole was pure luck. I let you win." He added as they looked at the display windows to the stores they passed.

Gabriella rolled her eyes and giggled. "No you didn't, you lost… pathetically I might add. And now you're trying to save what's left of your man pride."

"Are you serious?" Troy chuckled. "If I cared about my man pride I would never have walked through the parking lot naked just because a girl said to."

"I was joking." She reminded him.

"Doesn't matter, it might have been extreme but it got your attention didn't it?"

"Yeah me and every other girl at East High." Gabriella joked.

"You jealous?"

"I have no reason to be, we're not dating."

"Yet." Troy added with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "You'd think after all the charming moves I've put on you tonight, that you'd at least give me a chance."

Gabriella let out a loud laugh, "What do you call this?" She waved her hand and motioned between them.

"This is a pity date."

"A pity date?" She scoffed. "I don't do pity dates, it's a waste of time."

Troy stopped walking for a moment and looked at her with a smile. "Then you admit you're not wasting your time with me?"

Gabriella averted her eyes from his and smiled. "Maybe…"

Troy shared a timid grin before his eyes lit up. "Well the night isn't over yet." He moved forward and grabbed her free hand with his. "Come along gerbil spitfire."

Gabriella groaned as she allowed him to pull her along. "Why must you call me that?"

"Sorry baby."

Rolling her eyes she laughed, "Yeah, like that's any better."

Troy stopped in his tracks and moved around so that his face was close to hers. "Get use to it." He smirked at the shocked expression that appeared before he turned back and continued down the walkway past several other couples.

Once they had finished their cones, Troy had steered her towards the arcade which was one of his favorite places to go.

"Well this is romantic…" Gabriella muttered once they entered the deserted room.

"Hey, you said you didn't want anything cheesy and cliché." Troy reminded her. "I told you, I listen."

"Yeah, well you obviously didn't hear me when I said I wouldn't date you."

"Ah… but we're past all that now because you did finally agree to go on a date with me." Troy pointed out as he got some coins for them to play with. He motioned for her to follow him as he lead her to the air hockey table. "Have you played this before?"

Gabriella shrugged, grabbing the mallet and getting into position. "About as much as mini-golf." She commented.

"Oh… great." Troy trailed off, suddenly a little nervous about making a fool out of himself.

"You're not scared of losing, are you Wildcat?" She teased, lifting her eyebrow.

Troy was caught off guard for a second, "Wildcat?"

"That's what they call you isn't it?" He nodded, confirming the nickname. "Well then, show me what you've got." She challenged as he put the coins into the dispenser and the table hummed to life.

"You challenging me baby?"

"Oh you know it." She shot back hitting the puck towards his goal and before he could even blink, she had scored. "Oh yeah!" She shouted, doing a mock victory dance in place.

Troy rolled his eyes, already predicting the rest of the game. "Lucky shot."

"Don't be a spoil sport…"

Twenty minutes and two rematches later, Troy conceded. "You're a girl." He whined playfully as they sat down next to each other, preparing to do some racing.

Gabriella couldn't help it, she stuck her tongue out at him. "Don't be a child, you did perfectly well for an amateur."

"An amateur?" He barked out sarcastically.

"But you can't beat me, I've got skills."

Shaking his head, he snorted in indignation. "You're kind of full of yourself."

"Am not." She childishly retorted. "You're the one who's full of yourself, acting like a baby because you lost."

"Please, I could have beaten you if I really wanted."

"Why can't you just accept that I'm a better player at air hockey than you and be done with it?" She asked, looking at him over her shoulder as she pressed start and turned the plastic wheel in front of her that acted as her steering mechanism.

"Because, I never lose anything." Troy started and then he stopped, realizing the implication of his words.

Gabriella nodded and quietly responded, "Exactly. First step to proving you can be with someone like me Troy, is by accepting defeat and being okay with someone else winning."

Troy didn't say anything else, letting her words mull over in his brain.

After several games of racing, Pac-man and Tetris, the two had finally decided to call it quits and had headed back to Troy's truck.

"I guess I should get you home, it's already pretty late."

"Yeah…" Gabriella agreed. The two drove in silence save for Gabriella's occasional directions, both thinking about what had transpired that night between them.

* * *

Pulling up to her house, Troy left the truck running and jumped out to get her door. Gabriella was amused by the fact that he was willing to go above and beyond being a gentleman that night, a major contrast to the jerk she usually saw everyday at school.

Offering her a hand, Gabriella gratefully allowed him to help her out of his rusty old truck. "Thanks." She shyly stated, looking down at her boots.

Troy smiled, leaning against the door after he shut it. "So… did you have fun?"

"Surprisingly… yes." She nodded, smiling a little. "I did."

Troy sent her one of his charming grins, making her legs turn to jelly and her heart skip a beat. "Does that mean I passed and you'll be mine now?"

Gabriella sent him a sad smile. "No… I might have had a good time but I really don't think I can trust you Troy."

The grin he had sported a moment ago slowly disappeared, his face suddenly gloomy since he didn't bother to hide his disappointment. "I promise, I'm not an ass Gabriella. That's just the picture that gets painted because nobody knows the real me."

"Troy…"

"No, you know what? It's cool." Troy put his hand up to stop her. "I did what I set out to do tonight so I'll go to sleep with a smile on my face anyway, I just hope eventually you'll… I don't know, look at me differently." He rubbed the back of his neck as he scraped the tip of his shoe against the curb.

"What did you set out to do tonight exactly? Win me over?"

Troy looked up and locked gazes with her. "No, I got you to laugh and have fun with me… away from all the bullshit at school. You actually smiled at me today and I've been waiting for you to do that for a long time." He admitted, his honesty shocking Gabriella. "So uh… Happy Valentine's Day Gabriella, I'll see you tomorrow." With that Troy walked back around to his truck and got in, leaving Gabriella there to think about what he'd just said.

A minute passed and she realized he hadn't driven away yet, seemingly waiting for her to go inside safely before he pulled away. Gabriella pulled her coat closer around her as a shrill breeze blew through her hair. Walking up the front entryway towards the porch Gabriella shut her eyes tightly and exhaled a breath, calming her nerves. She wasn't one to usually admit she was wrong… but today…

Her eyes shot open as she about-faced, heading back in the direction she had just come from. Her eyes set on Troy's figure in the car as she walked with a purpose. Coming around the front of the car, Troy watched curiously wondering what she was up to. She stopped at the his window and knocked.

Troy rolled it down all the way, his face emotionless. "Forget something?"

"Did I win?"

Quirking an eyebrow, he regarded her with a hint of perplexity. "Uh… yes Gabriella, you won the air hockey match and the mini-golf-"

Shaking her head, Gabriella placed her hands against his car and leaned forward. "No not the games Troy. I meant, did you finally realize that people like you and me don't belong together? That I will never be good enough for you because I'm not popular, because I'm a math freak and-"

"Shut up." Troy cut her off.

"What?" She asked out of breath from her rant.

"If you think that's how I think of you, than I didn't prove anything to you today." Troy shook his head sadly. "If that's what you mean by winning than no, you didn't win. Because I'm never going to stop trying to prove to you that I'm the one for you. I don't care what you do or say, I will never stop liking you. I've felt like this since you started at East High and yeah I might be cocky sometimes but that's just for show and you know it." Troy leaned forward towards the open window, his voice loud and clear. "How many times do I have to tell you, I want you. No one else."

Gabriella frowned, her lip bleeding from the pressure she had been applying to it while she bit down. "Okay…"

"What?" He asked, confused.

"I'll be your Valentine Troy Bolton, but only if you do something else for me."

Troy wasn't expecting that at all, but he figured whatever came out of her mouth next would determine his real chances of being with her. "I'm not running through the school naked again…"

Gabriella laughed, genuinely laughed at his comment. "No, although I doubt anyone would mind the show. I was thinking more, I'll be with you if you prove you can be the guy you were tonight, all the time." She cocked her head to the side and smiled.

Troy's eyes widened at the simplicity of her request. "All the time?" He asked and she shrugged.

"Well most of the time. I'll allow you a couple screw ups here and there since you're a guy but… I like you too so I'm willing to try this, if you still are. You don't have to, I mean… I know I can be difficult sometimes and I have my own faults I'll admit but no one is perfect." Gabriella ranted quickly, taking a moment to study the expression on Troy's face. "Troy?"

"You like me?" He blurted out.

Gabriella was shocked and then slowly nodded, "Didn't I say that already?" Then, without a second thought, Troy leaned forward through the window and cupped her face with his calloused hands. He smashed his lips against hers in urgency, completely catching her off guard. Slowly, her eyes drifted shut as he lead the kiss, keeping it sweet and simple since he was playing the part of a gentleman that night.

Pulling back, he kept his lips lingering over hers for a second before leaning in and pecking her three more times, a wide smile gracing his features. "It's nice to finally know." He whispered as her own hand came up and traced his jaw line, resting on his cheek.

Her eyes opened slowly, bright chocolate orbs mixing with his blue hues as they studied their reflections. Feeling brave, she shut her eyes and titled forward, initiating their second kiss and Troy gladly accepted. "You know… it's nice… seeing this side of you." Troy mumbled against her lips in-between kisses.

"Mmmhmm."

"As oppose, to the other side." He finished lamely, too mesmerized by their shared kisses to even know what he was saying anymore.

"I agree, this is much better." Gabriella informed him, pulling back to look at his face with uncertainty. "As long as you think so."

"Yeah, I do." Troy nodded, moving forward to capture her lips again. He nibbled gently on her bottom lip, savoring the feeling of finally being able to kiss her and know that she wouldn't kill him for it. He smiled into the kiss when he heard her moan quietly at the sensation he was creating inside of her.

Breaking apart, he leaned his forehead against hers and chuckled. "Let me pick you up tomorrow for school."

Gabriella kept her eyes shut, trying hard to steady her breathing. "You sure you want to be seen with me like that?"

"You know I don't care." He reminded her, placing a kiss on her temple as he turned himself in his seat fully so he could look at her. Rubbing his hand up her bare arm, he smiled gently. "I really, really, really don't care."

Gabriella let out a sigh of relief before giggling. "Well that's nice to hear but I'm going to need a little more convincing."

"Oh great, what do I have to do now?" He asked sarcastically.

"Be mine Valentine." She whispered with a smile before pulling away from him completely. "You can start by picking me up tomorrow and eating lunch with me and my friends again. Night Wildcat."

Gabriella blew him a kiss while walking up the steps and Troy was so busy grinning he barely remembered to shout a good night to her. Watching her swish her hips back and forth enticingly as she entered her house, Troy laughed and pulled away from the curb, happy with the way everything had worked out. If he was lucky, things would only get better for them from now on. One thing was sure though, he knew they would never forget that Valentine's Day for the rest of their lives. It was the perfect end to the night, and the perfect beginning for them.

* * *

**A/N: Happy Valentine's Day! This is just something I whipped up real quick, I didn't like it at first and was very close to just starting over but eventually I finished it. Hopefully it didn't suck and was kind of enjoyable. Thanks for reading! Any reviews would be much appreciated and my apologies for any grammatical errors. And just because... Zanessa Forever. I'll get back to that BH sequel now, I promise.**


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